Levi's Vintage Clothing - 1944 501® Jeans Rigid - 12oz

Levi's Vintage Clothing

The Levi's® Vintage Clothing 1944 501® Jean reflects the brand's enduring identity and dedication to quality, as well as its evolution with history. World War II had a drastic impact on supplies and production of consumer goods, so Levi Strauss & Co. had to abide by a new set of rules.

To conserve raw materials for the war effort, the United States Government ordered clothing manufacturers to remove certain amounts of metal, fabric and thread from their garments. Since availability and delivery of supplies was hit-or-miss, Levi Strauss & Co. often had to use whatever was on hand. Off came the cinch, its two rivets, and the watch pocket rivetsthis cut down on both fabric and metal. During the war years, buttons also became standard issue. Some featured a laurel leaf design, and others were branded. Jeans were often produced with a laurel leaf waistband button, and plain fly buttons. One rationing rule in particular was a little harder to bear: the order to remove the classic Levi's® Arcuate stitch design from the back pockets, as it was considered decorative and didn't have a function. However, Levi Strauss & Co. believed it did: the Arcuate was a prime identifier of the classic 501®. Rather than lose this important design, Levi Strauss & Co. worked out a system to print it on every pair of 501® Jeans. The paint eventually washed off, but having that double-arch design visible when buying the jeans was the important thing. This garment is made with selvedge denim from Cone Mills a Levi's® partner for over 100 years.